Snow Removal

Due to the potential for melting snow and subsequent ice formation we will be removing snow from the South greens next Monday and Tuesday unless conditions change. Ice formation is detrimental to annual bluegrass (poa annua) greens.

Winter Greens North Course

It's one of those years (5th warmest November) when temperatures are above normal in November-December and the inevitable questions arise: "Why are the North greens closed? Other courses have their greens open."

 

 

As background, In the Golf Course Standards:

 

The North Course greens will close to play after dormancy and before damage occurs to the turf. Temporary greens will be used throughout the winter once the greens are closed.  The Board of Directors has approved the North Course greens closing date each year at the end of play on the 2^nd Sunday following Thanksgiving Day.

 

This year (November 2015) our hand was forced a bit because our window to get the North greens topdressed was the Monday following Thanksgiving, and that dictated moving to temps sooner than expected.

 

 

Here is the basic rationale for temporary greens:

• Strategically, we have been asked to condition the North Course as closely as possible to the South Course. "A top 10 Michigan" course.
• Traffic on frozen greens (or greens in the current freeze-thaw cycle) creates a "sheering" effect on root systems. The top layer moves and the frozen layer underneath does not. Imagine popping off a muffin top.
• Water can be held above this frozen layer, saturating the upper layer. Traffic on saturated turf is not beneficial.
• One of the ways to protect greens from harsh winters (2013 & 2014) is to apply a layer of topdressing sand. In addition to winter protection, it makes the greens smoother in the spring - assuming there is no winter foot traffic. Traffic on topdressed greens is like sandpaper to dormant grass.
• Ballmarks on greens in the winter ... will be annual bluegrass (poa annua) in the spring.
• Topdressing with heavy equipment needs to be completed before the ground freezes.
• Tarps or covers are installed for winter protection and the staples used to hold them down need to be pushed in, before the ground freezes.
• In a Championship year and with the winters of 2013 and 2014 in the rear view mirror, I believe we should be vigilant.

I believe strongly that these practices - in addition to our snow removal, aerification, mowing, fertilization, watering and numerous other seasonal agronomic practices - have a proven record and are beneficial to quality playing surfaces and member service and satisfaction. I believe strongly in our overall Agronomic Plan, that it pays dividends when times are tough (the last 2 springs come to mind) and that we need to continue our policy of protecting the North greens in the winter.

 

Lastly, "temporary winter greens" cannot be separated from the overall Agronomic Plan. It's all part of the woven tapestry that works together to provide a consistent product.

 

**However, it is the privilege of the owners to reset the strategic plan for the courses and I am happy to adjust my recommendations if that strategic shift occurs.

Here are some other resources that may help:

 

 

http://usga.org/course_care/articles/other/winter_play/Playing-Par-with-Jack-Frost/

 

 

 http://gsrpdf.lib.msu.edu/ticpdf.py?file=/article/hartwiger-moeller-winter-1-9-15.pdf

Work Space

Thank you to the members at Oakland Hills for reinvesting in the work space environment. Our "new" shop floor is safer, easier to clean and sets a professional atmosphere for visitors. A clean, well organized work space improves moral and lets the staff now their work matters.

Topdressing Greens

Today we topdress the North greens. As we do not use winter covers on the North (like we do on the South) this layer of sand helps protect the turf from harsh winter conditions. While not a guarantee, it does provide some insurance against the most severe conditions.

Tomorrow we will be installing the winter covers on the South greens in advance of the extreme weather moving in over the next 10 days.

Sodding Greens

Part of the recovery process included sodding a few spots on greens. Number five South was repaired using sod from our nursery.



April 2014

May 1, 2014

We've Come a Long Way

We've made nice progress in 4 weeks. Number 10 South below.

April 1st, 2014

May 1st, 2014

The Correct Record

A lot of information has been communicated about winter damage, snow removal and lost turf at Oakland Hills. How much turf was lost? How many dead greens? Was the North damaged? How much does it cost to remove snow?

 

Much of the information regarding Oakland Hills in the public domain is incorrect. Here are the facts about this past winter, snow removal and our current status.

SOUTH COURSE

• We remove snow from the South greens every winter when we see a potential rise in temperature above 30 degrees. Some of the South greens are covered, some are not. We removed snow this winter after the early January snowstorm and before the meltdown of January 8-10. This action saved the South greens from more severe damage.

 

• Every green on the South sustained some damage, most of it minor. Greens 6, 8 and 12 suffered "serious" (10-15%) damage and only number eight is questionable. We are not playing to any temporary greens as of today, April 29th. Number eight may require a temporary green depending on the level of play. All of the South greens will recover in the next 2-4 weeks. 

 

• The labor cost to remove snow on the South this winter was approx. $5,000.

 

• The extra equipment required to remove snow from the South greens adds approx. $20,000 to our equipment inventory.

• Each cover we use is approx. $3,000, depending on size.

•  It takes 4 - 7 people to remove snow on the South Course.
 
• All of the South fairways incurred some ice damage and most of this will heal on its own.

 

NORTH COURSE

 

• We do not currently remove snow on the North greens. All of the North greens sustained damage. Some of it severe with the most severe #15 green, approx. 30% turf loss.

 

• We will be playing to all of the North greens when we open on May 9th. There are currently no temporary greens on the North Course. The PG did not suffer any winter damage.

 

• There are no "dead" greens on either course.

 

 

 

 

Winter Damage to Turf - Golf Course Update

Continuous improvement. The weather has not been conducive to rapid growth but the North greens are slowly improving. The damage was severe but not devastating. I think in a few more weeks we will see 100% recovery. The South is nearly damage free with #8 green the worst. The damage on the South was not as severe because we routinely remove snow from those greens.

The fairways were severely damaged and some of those areas will be sodded throughout May and June.

Below are some photos from the North comparing what we were seeing in March and what we are seeing today. We've come a long way.

#6 North March 2014

#6 North April 2014

#1 North March 2014

#1 North April 2014



#7 North March 2014

#7 North April 2014

Course Update

The date may be early April, the turf thinks it's mid-March. The golf course is slowly waking up. We have mowed greens only one time, unusual for this time of year.

As you know the greens suffered this winter. The South course, while damaged, came through in pretty good shape. The exceptions are #8 and #12 green which are struggling, but will survive. The North course greens were damaged to a greater degree, but they too will recover. Overall, we came through the winter in pretty good shape.

The golf course needs some time to recover.

Removing cover 15 green North

Why we use covers for recovery.

#7 South - weak areas due to tree shade

 

9 fairway North in March 2014


 

Covers

Some of the South greens are covered each winter. Those greens had the snow removed and this week after review, look really good. There is nothing more than minimal damage  we would see each spring. On those greens, there is little to worry about.



No Panic Yet

A lot of information has been communicated about the extreme winter now ending. Snow, ice, cold temperatures. All of this has given many greenskeepers a nervous twitch. We tend to lose sleep over any amount of potential lost turf.

Certainly we are going to see dead turf this spring. It's expected. You can't go through a winter like this one and not expect some dead grass somewhere on the golf course. But I think it's too early to know exactly how much turf we've lost, we need a warmup to make that call. It may not be as bad as we think ... or maybe it's worse.

If and when we have lost turf, we'll repair it. That's what we do. We'll keep you informed as to the conditions on the golf courses and if there is dead grass, we'll get it back in play as quickly as possible.

Window Dressing

One of the simple ways we use to check the health of turf during winter is placing samples inside to see if the turf will "sprout". The samples we have brought in are inconsistent but most show signs of life. It's too early to tell the extent of any damage, but these samples are encouraging.

South Course

18 green South

Winter Update and Status

We have been monitoring the condition of the greens on both courses. The unprecedented weather has caused concern throughout SE Michigan. The extreme cold and ice formation is dangerous to turf in all areas but especially on greens. We have been removing snow and ice where appropriate, covering the more at risk greens with permeable covers and generally worrying about the surviveability of the turf in these conditions.

Dr. Kevin Frank from MSU was here today to look at several greens. It is too early to know if there is any turf loss or the extent of loss if it occurs. We will keep you informed as conditions permit.



Dr. Kevin Frank on #1 green North





Shop Work

Winter work includes equipment refurbishing and we're making good progress. All of the cutting units get rebuilt and sharpened. This process was once done by hand: manually passing a grinding stone over the cutting cylinder. Now this operation is automated; just set the cutting unit in the grinding machine, apply the parameters unique to each machine and the rest is automatic. Our mechanics monitor this operation closely and we're lucky to have such a great team.

We continue to remove snow from greens that might be at risk from winter damage.

Course Update

The North Course is closed to all play so we have set up temporary greens in the South approaches. The greens are frozen so please, if you are planning on playing this winter, play to the temporary greens.

Irrigation blowout, topdressing and snow mold applications are complete on both courses.

The 'Bus Depot' adjacent to the 8th hole on the North Course will be graded and seeded next spring. All other in play areas are finished.

Winter Pruning

Oak Wilt is a vascular disease and it attacks all Oaks. The disease plugs the water conducting (or sapwood) tissue, interrupting the flow of water, leading to wilting and sometimes death. Fungicides can be injected to protect the tree, but as with any chemical treatment, the results can be inconsistent.

An easy way to prevent Oak Wilt is to prune outside of the disease transmittal time frame. Sap feeding beetles can spread the fungus from tree to tree, so it is important to avoid open pruning wounds during the growing season when beetles are in flight. So winter pruning on oaks is preferred.

This week we begin our annual schedule of oak pruning on both courses. It takes about one week to complete those trees scheduled: 10 - 20% of the native oak inventory.

Snow vs. Rain

Depending on which source you use, the conversion of snow inches to rain inches varies. Many factors can influence the conversion, like the crystal structure and moisture content of the snow. (Some sources say 10" of snow = 1" of rain). The conditions of temperature and humidity in the cloud determine the type of snow crystals that form. At close to 5 degrees F, beautiful, starlike crystals form. These crystals, called "dendrites" because they have many delicate branches, make the fluffiest snow.

An easy way - and mostly accurate - for the homeowner is to assume 1 inch of rain is equal to 1 foot of snow, a 12-1 ratio. Depending on the temperature and moisture profiles of the snow growth region of the atmosphere and the origin area of the storm system, that ratio can go higher, say 20-1, which would be 20 inches, or lower, say 6-1 or so.


12-1 is most forecasters starting point, and if you go to your local NWS page and read the area forecast discussion, they usually tell what ratio they believe a system will have as it moves through your area.

Winter Equipment Repairs

We are getting closer to completing our Winter Rebuild Program. In addition to the thorough inspection and repair each piece of our $2,000,000 inventory receives, we are cleaning and painting the staff use areas.

Sprayers, mowers, carts, trailers and rollers all get a complete "tune up". We do not have much time in season to do this type of extensive Preventative Maintenance. Our summer equipment maintenance is limited to oil and filter changes and any routine breakdowns. So winter is our opportunity to take the covers off and get a good luck inside.

Salt Damage

We use "salt" to melt parking lot ice regularly but not without negative consequences to surfaces and plants.
Damage from salt occurs when the foliage is burned by salt splashed on the foliage or when salt laden snow is thrown against the foliage. Also salt can be absorbed through the root system as it is washed from the parking lot. The symptoms of salt damage are: Stunted growth, yellowed foliage with brown edges, brown, scorched foliage or yellowing and withered evergreen foliage.

Salt is also corrosive to hard surfaces like steps, brick pavers and concrete. We use other "ice melting" products that are less toxic, but they too can cause damage. The best way to limit damage is to use salt sparingly during winter months.

Removing Water

Removing water before it turns to ice seems to be a successful strategy for us. We are not sure if it's the ice or the sudden temperature drop that kills poa, but removing water from playing surfaces is key to preventing winter damage.

Today we are out checking drains and removing as much standing water as possible. The ground is frozen about 4" below the surface so that is preventing some of the water from moving down in to the soil.

#1 green South

#9 South